International student in united state of America Essay

International student in united state of America - Essay Example They go to the United States because of the great reputation universities in the United States have for teaching students. These students are often studying in technical fields such as computer science, engineering and biomedical studies that are not available to them in their home countries. Most international students are working to earn an undergraduate degree, but many are working on graduate and post-graduate degrees as well. One thing that the United States is famous for is the many different cultures that all coexist rather peacefully in one nation. This is attractive to students that are coming from countries where ethnic hatred or even open warfare is a reality. It is also very attractive to study in the United States if you are coming from a country where basic human rights and freedoms such as speech, religion and ownership of property are not guaranteed. Great school and a welcoming culture make studying in the United States the first choice for many international student s. But this does not mean that there are not problems for international students that choose to study in the United States. I have a very close friend from China that ran into some real problems while studying at a university in the United States. He was very clear in stating that he did not hold the Americans responsible for his bad experiences. He realized after a while that an American studying in Beijing would probably have many of the same challenges, only they would be reversed. Communication between cultures is very difficult and this fact led to many of the misunderstandings and problems he encountered. The first problem centered on the use of the English language. My friend studied English all through school and felt that he was quite proficient in his use of the language. I remember he was very excited when he scored well on his TOEFEL test. He said that he felt that this was a real indication that he was ready to use the English language every day and do well. He soon lea rned that hew was wrong for several reasons. One reason language caused him to have a difficult time was the fact that going to a shop or a supermarket became a very stressful experience. In the town where he was living, many of the people at the check-out were very impatient. If he asked them to repeat something they said, even only once, they seemed to be agitated. One very rude person actually said, â€Å"Why don’t you come back when you can speak English right?† He wanted to speak with a manager to lodge a complaint about this very rude employee, but he was afraid he would not be able to communicate clearly with the manager. He was humiliated so he just handed some money over to the person and walked out of the store. He didn’t even stay to take his change. He heard the other workers laughing as he walked away. This was his worst experience because of his English language skills and it happened on one of his first days in the United States. My friend soon fo und a shop where the workers were more patient and polite, so this situation was soon solved. What he was not prepared for was the type of academic language that he had to deal with at the university. Classes were much harder than he expected because he was not able to process the language quickly enough to pay attention to what was being taught. He found himself falling more and more behind. He didn’t want to ask the professors for help, but finally got so desperate that he went to each of his teachers on the same day to beg for help. He